jeffco
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Colorado justices say plaintiffs must show ‘likelihood’ of negligence in suing government for injuries
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The Colorado Supreme Court ruled on Monday that plaintiffs suing the government for injuries caused by a dangerous condition in a public building must demonstrate at the outset they can likely succeed in proving the government’s negligence. In doing so, the justices rejected the Court of Appeals’ belief that it was not necessary for a…
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Colorado justices agree Jeffco not immune from parking garage slip-and-fall suit
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The Colorado Supreme Court agreed on Monday that a parking garage owned by Jefferson County qualified as a “public building” and a resurfacing project that created a hazard amounted to “maintenance,” which, in combination, meant the county is not immune from liability for a woman’s slip-and-fall. The case implicated the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act, which…
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Colorado justices ponder whether evidence enough to convict man of sex crime
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The Colorado Supreme Court considered this week whether Jefferson County prosecutors actually had enough evidence to convict a man of a child sex crime, based on a one-minute, sexually suggestive conversation for which he is serving six years to life in prison. Previously, the state’s Court of Appeals concluded James Clayton Johnson’s alleged comments toward…
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Colorado justices hear arguments on Jeffco slip-and-fall, man’s pursuit of bike thief
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Members of the Colorado Supreme Court on Thursday considered whether the state law that broadly shields the government from civil lawsuits applies to upgrades of public parking garages, raising the possibility of cities and counties being increasingly on the hook for personal injury claims in the future. The justices also heard a second case questioning…
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State Supreme Court takes up governmental immunity cases for trip-and-fall, speeding officer
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The Colorado Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to review two appeals questioning the boundaries of the government’s general immunity from civil lawsuits, with one case involving a trip-and-fall in Jefferson County and the other implicating a police officer in Montrose County who killed two people during a pursuit. At least three of the seven members of…
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DPS considers closing 10 schools; JeffCo considers closing 16
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A slew of metro area elementary and middle schools are facing closure as districts grapple what leaders say is crippling low enrollment at some facilities, although the proposals have seen pushback from community members who say there are better solutions and districts need to provide more transparency. The school boards for Denver Public Schools and…
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Judge who slashed jury $1.5 million verdict by 70% acted reasonably, appeals court finds
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A Jefferson County judge was justified in reducing a jury’s $1.5 million award to a car crash victim by 70%, the state’s second highest court ruled last week. Catherine Pisano, who underwent multiple medical procedures and experienced lingering pain after she was rear-ended on Interstate 70 in 2014, asked the Court of Appeals to find…
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Marshall Fire weighs on justices as high court considers arson laws
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A Jefferson County jury convicted Christopher Magana of arson years before the recent Marshall Fire became the most destructive in the state’s history, but the members of the Colorado Supreme Court wondered openly what the prosecution’s charging decisions in Magana’s case would mean if applied to a much more catastrophic blaze. The justices heard oral…
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Jeffco sex assault conviction reversed after appeals court says judge allowed expert to vouch for victim
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The state Court of Appeals reversed a man’s sexual assault conviction from Jefferson County after finding the trial judge allowed an expert witness who had not met the victim to essentially tell the jury she was being truthful. In the 2018 trial of Steven Matthew Ramirez, Jeffco prosecutors called a “cold” expert to testify – so…
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Jeffco judge wrongfully terminated father’s rights as he struggled to connect to hearing, appeals court rules
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A Jefferson County judge declined to postpone proceedings and instead terminated a father’s parental rights as he struggled to connect to the virtual hearing, a decision the state’s second-highest court has now reversed. District Court Judge Ann Gail Meinster should have granted the request to postpone the February 2021 hearing, a three-judge panel of the…
